Time4ANap

Thank you. Yes, it is extremely hard to be grey-less. To be honest, we weren't ready until we met her, and then we just knew. Another hound will pick you before you know it!

Thanks everyone! She is settling in nicely and had a great first night here. Like Rocket, she apparently likes it when you cover her with a blanket. She was still under the blanket this morning and hadn't moved or kicked it off. (It's a little chilly in the desert at the moment, so the heat is on and blankets are needed at night.) She got up with DW at 6:30 and followed her around, then disappeared. DW found her back in the bedroom with me where we were both still sound asleep. We aren't sure how long she's been off the farm, but the haul she was on came in a few weeks ago. We don't know if she's been in other houses before this week although we suspect that she might have hung out in the house a little at the group's kennel. Petunia, Trolley and Snickers will be together this weekend, so more pics coming over the weekend. Thank you for this!

She's well stocked!

After losing Rocket in October, the past few months have been a roller coaster of emotions, many exacerbated by the emptiness of this house without a dog and also from missing our boy. . We often had visits from Trolley and Snickers which helped immensely. Earlier this week we met Petunia, a 10 year old broodie, (Racing Name MW Neptunia) who came to the group on a recent haul. Petunia came to our house today for a visit, and isn't leaving. The paperwork has already been signed this evening. Everyone, Meet Petunia! She has proven to be bombproof. A 10 year old broodie who had 21 pups is just what this house needs at the moment to liven the place up. We've only taken a few pictures today trying to give her some space, so will be posting some more in the next few days as she settles in. Edited to add - DW got a couple of other photos while playing tonight, so here's a few more. She had a scuffle with another dog somewhere along the way, so you might see an old injury on her side - she's fine though.

First the basics - check for worms and parasites. Then re-check, then check again. Dogs coming off the track for the last year or two have had worms with increasing resistance to treatment. Just about every dog coming off of every track tests positive, often for hookworm. A negative fecal means only that sample tested was negative, not that the dog is negative. It can take several tests before you get a positive result, so one test is not sufficient. I would first be sure that worms and parasites have been completely ruled out before looking for other things. The symptoms you posted can all be signs of worms or parasites.

Fortunately you can keep refilling the slumber balls. We bought a bag of the fill and topped off Rocket's slumber ball a couple of months before we lost him. He was not happy about that as apparently he had the bed the way he liked it, nice and flattened out. We had to take out the fill that we added.

I've seen some cheap imitations of the slumber ball online, but nothing that even comes close to the real thing. Apparently they only bought DFS for the pharmacy business. Along the same line, I noticed that our local Sam's clubs have no pet beds in the local stores any longer. All pet beds are online only at the moment. We've had some really nice beds from Sam's over the years when we did not have Costco as an option. Our local Costco's don't carry the Kirkland bolster bed at all, although I still hear about them popping up in some stores in other parts of the country. Maybe we should buy to the old slumber ball factory in Wisconsin and keep it going so there's still a decent dog bed option out there.

He's got that "Like I was saying before you interrupted" face. Handsome dude!

Seems like a slippery situation..... I'll show myself out....

You have to use a photo host that allows third party linking. I use Imgur. Others here use Photobucket or Flickr Once you upload your photo to a hosting service, copy the link they provide to the photo and paste it into your post. Usually a BBCode link.

The FAQ on the Olewo site says that dogs cannot properly digest raw carrots. I'm not sure but assume that these are much more concentrated in dehydrated form than just giving a raw carrot. 2 items from the FAQ pasted below for reference. Can I just feed my dog raw carrots?While most dogs enjoy chewing up raw carrots, they will not benefit from the many healthy nutrients because dogs cannot properly digest raw vegetables. What makes Olewo Carrots so effective?Olewo Carrots are easy to digest because they are properly prepared for dogs to absorb and utilize the amazing nutrition in carrots. Olewo Carrots are made from a special variety of carrot high in beta-carotene and are super nutritious because they are grown in Northern Germany which is known for it's extremely fertile soil. The carrots are harvested at just the right time when the nutrient levels are at their peak. They go into preparation immediately after harvest to avoid loosing any of the valuable nutrients. Olewo's proprietary method of forming highly nutritious carrots into a pellet form assures maximum capture and preservation of the beneficial vitamins and nutrients.

Picking up after those hoomans is hard werk! She's adorable!

Sounds like an empty stomach from not eating. It's not unusual for them to not eat when brought into a new situation, but they usually get hungry eventually. Typically that kind of liquid or bile is the result of an empty tummy. The signs of stress (tucked tail) are also there. You might try something of high value or irresistible like some treats, or add something like a chopped up sardine into his food to get him to eat. Also make sure that he is actually drinking, If he's not, add a splash of chicken broth to the water and see if he drinks. If he's vomiting and not drinking, you'll need to be alert for dehydration after a while.

Greysmom is spot on. The signs are there but they are very subtle with this boy. I second continuing to work with the behaviorist. The trash can is probably a very high value treat in his mind depending on what's in it. You are most of the way there from the sound of it but he still needs some additional work and reinforcement.

Look at the comments below the article. Every dog owner out there thinks the author is a lunatic.

You definitely have the best people available working on it! We love Dr Cuoto!

See if she will let you put a cold pack wrapped in a towel on it. That should help reduce any swelling or bruising. If you don't have a cold pack, crushed ice in a ziploc and wrapped in a towel will do the trick.

I've never seen a toddler muzzled before.... Muzzles have their place but some hounds really hate them. I have no problem muzzling a hound when left alone at home or left with another hound. The hounds are used to being muzzled for turnouts and playtime in the kennel. It's certainly an option when you make the introductions and while they are getting used to each other and go from there. I probably wouldn't muzzle every time your grandson comes though as the dog may start to associate him with being muzzled. They will probably become friends very quickly, and as long as your grandson stays off of the dog's bed, doesn't grab toys or food away, or touch the dog while sleeping, you've covered 99% of the triggers. Remember that many of these hounds can be sound asleep with their eyes open when lying down, so you might want to start with a "no petting unless the dog is standing up rule" just to be safe. Hopefully someone with toddlers can chime in on whether they've muzzled on a regular basis with kids around. I've never seen it, but we aren't around kids very often living here in the old people's capital of the US. Edited typo.

Toddlers and greyhounds can be a tough match. Mostly because both have the toddler mentality. The grey is in a new environment and trying to figure out what's expected of him or her, and the toddler is pushing every limit they can as they learn to explore. Racing greyhounds have never been touched while sleeping, never had anyone reach into their food bowl while eating, pounce on them or startle them trying to play and lots of other things that kids do. It's not so much that the dog is aggressive, but that there are rules that have to be followed by the entire household and not just the child to respect the dog's space. Many toddlers just aren't at a point where they are capable of following those rules. On the flip side of that, many homes with toddlers do just fine with greyhounds. It is all going to depend on the toddler, and the dog as well as the boundaries that are set for both and the dog getting used to the routine of living in a house. The problem if you have a toddler who doesn't follow the rules is that you are setting up the dog for failure. There have been previous cases where a child reached into a dog's bowl, or tried to take food away and the dog ends up being labeled as vicious when it defends it's food or space in normal dog behavior. So, probably not the answer you are looking for, but it's all going to depend on both the toddler respecting the rules, and the dog learning the rules and routine of the house. I'm putting that in it's simplest form when it can be very complex. Some of the others here who have been through getting a new dog with a small child or toddler can share their experience with this. Both the toddler and the dog have to be a good match from the onset. If the dog is afraid of children (some are) then that dog isn't a good fit for your house. It may take time, but there will eventually be a dog who is. The group needs to step up and make sure that any dog introduced is potentially a good match for your household based on the experience that the foster has with them. Good luck. It can take a little time to find that perfect hound.

Look! It's Jackie O...

We ordered the Help Em Up Harness for Rocket when his issues started. The harness is a little bulky, but based on the experience of others here seems to be worth the investment. We never got to put it on him as he declined rapidly and we had to make the ultimate decision that none of us want to make. Although he was otherwise a happy, healthy 12 (almost 13) year old, we could not let him suffer the immobility and risk of injury due to weakness and made the decision that a day too soon was better than a day too late in his case. We did many of the same meds when Rocket started having issues, except we also did Adequan Injections at home which I feel gave us a couple of extra months with him. Once Adequan stops working or the LS progresses though, the decline can be rather fast. We did not do acupuncture due to Rocket's space issues. He did not like the Vet getting up close and personal although he did love the Cold Laser Treatments. Wishing the best for Kevin!

Any walking is better than no walking. I have always been a fan of at least one long walk 30-45 minutes each day, so time wise you are getting that in. The thing I noticed when we moved to the desert is that Rocket rapidly lost all of his muscle when we couldn't do long walks due to hot weather in the summers here. He never gained it back in cooler weather walks, and I think it contributed to his eventual leg/spine issues.

If she has cabin fever, take her for a ride (assuming she likes rides.) She probably needs rest for the limp, but boredom sets in when you do that. Anything that will entertain her will help. Try some clicker training, puzzle toys or Kongs, rides, go to the park and just hang out on a blanket if the weather allows etc. If rest was prescribed for the limp, then I would hold off on the longer walks.

Murray was my stinky fish eating buddy on the beach. He and Rocket are probably hanging out at their own "Camp Cocktail" and telling stories about what suckers we are. To Murray

When we lived in Illinois, sub zero temperatures were the only time that Rocket would hold up a foot during a walk. The cold was actually burning his foot, so we would turn around. He wouldn't wear boots but still insisted on his walk, even in a wind chill of minus 25F. It usually depended on a combination of conditions such as humidity, ice on the ground etc before it bothered him. I think 6 miles is quite a bit for a greyhound, but again it will depend on the conditioning of the hound and over what period of time. It just sounds like too much for me unless the hound has really worked up to it over a long period of time, mostly due to wear and cold or hot temperatures on the pads of the feet over that distance.